Friends Buy Street Drawings for Museum

Contemporary artwork of streets and passers-by in Newcastle-under-Lyme has been purchased for the museum’s collections.

The Friends of the Brampton Museum group has bought a set of original architectural drawings from Whitmore-based artist Ronnie Cruwys before her impending move to Scotland.

The former conservation architect uses old maps and photographs to create accurate, full length elevations of buildings.

Her collection features recent drawings of street scenes in Newcastle including the former Maxims nightclub, High Street, Merrial Street, Church Street, the Ironmarket, Red Lion Square, Well Street, Garden Street, Bridge Street and Liverpool Road. Others include Keele Bothies in the university’s walled gardens and Station Cottages, Baldwins Gate.

Ronnie, who has exhibited at the Brampton Museum, contacted officers expressing a desire for the framed pieces to stay in their “birthplace”.

She said: “My drawings focus on streets as a whole rather than just an assortment of buildings. This means you see them from a wider perspective; how one building relates to another and how the loss of one building affects its neighbours. I created them as a social and historical archive so I am very happy they are being retained as a collection for public record in Newcastle. They can be read and interpreted in years to come.”

The Friends of the Brampton Museum supports the work of the museum by raising funds and organising historical talks.

Chair Beryl Carter added: “The committee is delighted to secure these high quality drawings which capture life in Newcastle in the early 21st century. They complement similar artwork from the 1800s and will become a very important learning resource, especially in the future.”

Caption: Artist Ronnie Cruwys is pictured, left, handing over her drawing of Well Street, Newcastle, to Beryl Carter, Friends of the Brampton Museum chair.